444 LONG-TAILED DUCK. 



North Russia, Siberia, and throughout Arctic America, as well as 

 in Greenland ; in fact its summer-range is circumpolar. In cold 

 weather its migrations extend to the Italian lakes and the Adriatic, 

 though not, as far as is known, to the African side of the Mediter- 

 ranean ; in Asia, to Japan and North China ; while in America it is 

 found down to about lat. 37°, and is widely known as the 'South- 

 southerly ' and ' Old Squaw,' from its gabbling note. In this con- 

 nection it may here be mentioned that in many parts of Scotland 

 the call-note is rendered by ' Coal an' can'le licht.' 



The nest, generally placed among low bushes by the side of 

 fresh-water, is composed of a few stems of grass, with a thick lining 

 of down which is little inferior to that of the Eider. The eggs, of a 

 somewhat elongated oval form, are pale greyish-green, and measure 

 about 2'i by i'45 in. On a small flat island in My-vatn, Ice- 

 land, Messrs. Shepherd and Upcher counted more than twenty 

 nests, and observed a Long-tailed Duck and a Scaup sitting together 

 on one which contained several eggs of the two species. The food 

 consists of animalculge which swim at various depths, and of small 

 molluscs, crustaceans Szc, chiefly picked off" sea-weed; or in sum- 

 mer of fresh-water plants and insects. 



The adult male in spring has the cheeks brownish-grey ; below, 

 on each side of the neck, an oval patch of dark brown ; forehead, 

 crown, nape and all round the neck pure white ; back, rump and tail- 

 feathers (14 in number, the central ones being sometimes 9 in. long), 

 blackish ; elongated scapulars, inner secondaries, and short outside 

 tail-feathers white ; breast, wing-coverts and primaries brownish- 

 black ; belly and flanks white ; bill pale rose-colour in the middle, 

 when fresh, nail and the basal-half black ; irides varying from yellow 

 to hazel and red ; legs and toes pale lead-colour, webs blackish. 

 Length inclusive of the tail-feathers 22-26 in. ; wing 9 in. In the 

 summer-plumage, assumed by the end of May, the space round the 

 eye is pale buff mixed with a little white, the rest of the head, 

 neck, back and breast being dark brown, while the feathers of the 

 scapulars and the secondaries have broad rufous margins with black 

 centres. In the depth of winter there is more white about the head 

 than in spring, and every intermediate stage between these plumages 

 is to be found. The female has the crown and upper parts dark 

 brown ; a dull white stripe behind the eye ; cheeks, throat and upper 

 breast ash-brown ; under parts white ; no long tail-feathers. The 

 young male resembles her, but soon becomes darker on the back. 



